Remotely reconfigurable distributed antenna system and methods

ABSTRACT

The present disclosure is a novel utility of a software defined radio (SDR) based Distributed Antenna System (DAS) that is field reconfigurable and support multi-modulation schemes (modulation-independent), multi-carriers, multi-frequency bands and multi-channels. The present disclosure enables a high degree of flexibility to manage, control, enhance, facilitate the usage and performance of a distributed wireless network such as flexible simulcast, automatic traffic load-balancing, network and radio resource optimization, network calibration, autonomous/assisted commissioning, carrier pooling, automatic frequency selection, frequency carrier placement, traffic monitoring, traffic tagging, pilot beacon, etc.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/391,408, filed Dec. 27, 2016, which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 14/949,405, filed Nov. 23, 2015, now U.S. Pat. No.9,531,473; which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.14/169,719, filed Jan. 31, 2014, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,419,714; which is acontinuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/211,243, filed Aug.16, 2011, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,682,338; which claims the benefit of U.S.Patent Application No. 61/382,836, filed Sep. 14, 2010; the disclosuresof which are hereby incorporated by reference for all purposes.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to wireless communicationsystems employing Distributed Antenna Systems (DAS) as part of adistributed wireless network. More specifically, the present inventionrelates to a DAS utilizing software defined radio (SDR).

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Wireless and mobile network operators face the continuing challenge ofbuilding networks that effectively manage high data-traffic growthrates. Mobility and an increased level of multimedia content for endusers requires end-to-end network adaptations that support both newservices and the increased demand for broadband and flat-rate Internetaccess. One of the most difficult challenges faced by network operatorsis caused by the physical movements of subscribers from one location toanother, and particularly when wireless subscribers congregate in largenumbers at one location. A notable example is a business enterprisefacility during lunchtime, when a large number of wireless subscribersvisit a cafeteria location in the building. At that time, a large numberof subscribers have moved away from their offices and usual work areas.It's likely that during lunchtime there are many locations throughoutthe facility where there are very few subscribers. If the indoorwireless network resources were properly sized during the design processfor subscriber loading as it is during normal working hours whensubscribers are in their normal work areas, it is very likely that thelunchtime scenario will present some unexpected challenges with regardto available wireless capacity and data throughput.

To accommodate this variation in subscriber loading, there are severalcandidate prior art approaches.

One approach is to deploy many low-power high-capacity base stationsthroughout the facility. The quantity of base stations is determinedbased on the coverage of each base station and the total space to becovered. Each of these base stations is provisioned with enough radioresources, i.e., capacity and broadband data throughput to accommodatethe maximum subscriber loading which occurs during the course of theworkday and work week. Although this approach typically yields a highquality of service, the notable disadvantage of this approach is thatduring a major part of the time many of the base stations' capacity isbeing wasted. Since a typical indoor wireless network deploymentinvolves capital and operational costs which are assessed on aper-subscriber basis for each base station, the typically high totallife cycle cost for a given enterprise facility is far from optimal.

A second candidate approach involves deployment of a DAS along with acentralized group of base stations dedicated to the DAS. A conventionalDAS deployment falls into one of two categories. The first type of DASis “fixed”, where the system configuration doesn't change based on timeof day or other information about usage. The remote units associatedwith the DAS are set up during the design process so that a particularblock of base station radio resources is thought to be enough to serveeach small group of DAS remote units. A notable disadvantage of thisapproach is that most enterprises seem to undergo frequentre-arrangements and re-organizations of various groups within theenterprise. Therefore, it's highly likely that the initial setup willneed to be changed from time to time, requiring deployment of additionalstaff and contract resources with appropriate levels of expertiseregarding wireless networks.

The second type of DAS is equipped with a type of network switch whichallows the location and quantity of DAS remote units associated with anyparticular centralized base station to be changed manually. Althoughthis approach would seem to allow dynamic reconfiguration based on theneeds of the enterprise or based on time of day, it frequently requiresdeployment of additional staff resources for real-time management of thenetwork. Another issue is that it's not always correct or best to makethe same DAS remote unit configuration changes back and forth on eachday of the week at the same times of day. Frequently it is difficult orimpractical for an enterprise IT manager to monitor the subscriberloading on each base station. And it is almost certain that theenterprise IT manager has no practical way to determine the loading at agiven time of day for each DAS remote unit; they can only guess.

Another major limitation of prior art DAS deployments is related totheir installation, commissioning and optimization process. Somechallenging issues which must be overcome include selecting remote unitantenna locations to ensure proper coverage while minimizing downlinkinterference from outdoor macro cell sites, minimizing uplinkinterference to outdoor macro cell sites, and ensuring properintra-system handovers while indoors and while moving from outdoors toindoors (and vice-versa). The process of performing such deploymentoptimization is frequently characterized as trial-and-error and as such,the results may not be consistent with a high quality of service.

A major limitation of prior art DAS equipment employing digitaltransmission links such as optical fiber or wired Ethernet is the factthat the prior-art RF-to-digital conversion techniques utilize anapproach whereby the system converts a single broad RF bandwidth ofe.g., 10 to 25 MHz to digital. Therefore all the signals, whether weakor strong, desired or undesired, contained within that broad bandwidthare converted to digital, whether those signals are desired or not. Thisapproach frequently leads to inefficiencies within the DAS which limitthe DAS network capacity. It would be preferable to employ analternative approach yielding greater efficiencies and improvedflexibility, particularly for neutral host applications.

In 2008 the FCC further clarified its E-911 requirements with regard toPhase 2 accuracy for mobile wireless networks. The information requiredin Phase 2 is the mobile phone number and the physical location, withina few dozen yards, from which the call was made. The Canadian governmentis reportedly considering enacting similar requirements. Also the FCC iseager to see US mobile network operators provide positioning serviceswith enhanced accuracy for E-911 for indoor subscribers. There is areported effort within the FCC to try to mandate Phase 2 accuracyindoors, within the next 2 years.

Many wireless networks employ mobile and fixed broadband wirelessterminals which employ GPS-based E-911 location services. It has beendemonstrated that GPS signals from satellites outdoors don't propagatewell into the indoor space. Therefore an alternative, more robust E-911location determination approach is required for indoors, particularly ifthe FCC requirements are changed to be more stringent.

Several US operators have expressed concern about how they canpractically and cost-effectively obtain these enhanced location accuracycapabilities. Operators are very eager to identify a cost-effectiveapproach which can be deployed indoors for enhanced location accuracy.

One proposed approach toward indoor location accuracy enhancement forCDMA networks would employ a separate unit known as a CDMA Pilot Beacon.A notable disadvantage of this approach for an indoor OAS application isthat since the CDMA Pilot Beacon unit is a separate and dedicated deviceand not integrated within the OAS, it would likely be costly to deploy.The Pilot Beacon approach for CDMA networks employs a Pilot Beacon witha unique PN code (in that area) which effectively divides a particularCDMA network coverage area (e.g., indoors) into multiple small zones(which each correspond to the coverage area of a low-power PilotBeacon). Each Pilot Beacon's location, PN code and RF Power level areknown by the network. Each Pilot Beacon must be synchronized to the CDMAnetwork, via GPS or local base station connection. A variable delaysetting permits each Pilot Beacon to have the appropriate system timingto permit triangulation and/or Cell 10 position determination. Oneoptional but potentially costly enhancement to this approach wouldemploy a Wireless Modem for each Pilot Beacon to provide remote Alarms,Control and Monitoring of each CDMA Pilot Beacon. No known solution forindoor location accuracy enhancement has been publicly proposed forWCDMA networks.

One candidate technically-proven approach toward indoor locationaccuracy enhancement for GSM networks would employ a separate unit knownas a Location Measurement Unit or LMU. A notable disadvantage of thisapproach for an indoor DAS application is that, since the LMU is aseparate and dedicated device and not integrated within the DAS, it iscostly to deploy. Each LMU requires a backhaul facility to a centralserver which analyzes the LMU measurements. The LMU backhaul cost addsto the total cost of deploying the enhanced accuracy E-911 solution forGSM networks. Despite the availability of the already technically-provenLMU approach, it has not been widely deployed in conjunction with indoorDAS.

Based on the prior art approaches described herein, it is apparent thata highly efficient, easily deployed and dynamically reconfigurablewireless network is not achievable with prior art systems andcapabilities.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention substantially overcomes the limitations of theprior art discussed above. The advanced system architecture of thepresent invention provides a high degree of flexibility to manage,control, enhance and facilitate radio resource efficiency, usage andoverall performance of the distributed wireless network. This advancedsystem architecture enables specialized applications and enhancementsincluding flexible simulcast, automatic traffic load-balancing, networkand radio resource optimization, network calibration,autonomous/assisted commissioning, carrier pooling, automatic frequencyselection, radio frequency carrier placement, traffic monitoring,traffic tagging, and indoor location determination using pilot beacons.The present invention can also serve multiple operators, multi-moderadios (modulation-independent) and multi-frequency bands per operatorto increase the efficiency and traffic capacity of the operators'wireless networks.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide acapability for Flexible Simulcast. With Flexible Simulcast, the amountof radio resources (such as RF carriers, CDMA codes or TDMA time slots)assigned to a particular RRU or group of RRUs by each RRU Access Modulecan be set via software control as described hereinafter to meet desiredcapacity and throughput objectives or wireless subscriber needs. Toachieve these and other objects, an aspect of the present inventionemploys software-programmable frequency selective Digital Up-Converters(DUCs) and Digital Down-Converters (DDCs). A software-defined RemoteRadio Head architecture is used for cost-effective optimization of theradio performance. Frequency selective DDCs and DUCs at the Remote RadioHead enable a high signal to noise ratio (SNR) which maximize thethroughput data rate. An embodiment shown in FIG. 1 depicts a basicstructure and provides an example of a Flexible Simulcast downlinktransport scenario. FIG. 2 depicts an embodiment of a basic structure ofa Flexible Simulcast uplink transport scenario.

It is a further object of the present invention to facilitate conversionand transport of several discrete relatively narrow RF bandwidths. Inanother aspect of the invention, an embodiment converts only thatplurality of specific, relatively narrow bandwidths that carry usefulinformation. Thus, this aspect of the present invention allows moreefficient use of the available optical fiber transport bandwidth forneutral host applications, and facilitates transport of more operators'band segments over the optical fiber. To achieve the above result, thepresent invention utilizes frequency-selective filtering at the RemoteRadio Head which enhances the system performance. In some embodiments ofthis aspect of the invention, noise reduction via frequency-selectivefiltering at the Remote Radio Head is utilized for maximizing the SNRand consequently maximizing the data throughput. It is a further objectof the present invention to provide CDMA and WCDMA indoor locationaccuracy enhancement. In an aspect of the present invention, anembodiment provides enhanced location accuracy performance by employingpilot beacons. FIG. 3 depicts a typical indoor system employing multipleRemote Radio Head Units (RRUs) and a central Digital Access Unit (DAU).The

Remote Radio Heads have a unique beacon that is distinct and identifiesthat particular indoor cell. The mobile user will use the beaconinformation to assist in the localization to a particular cell.

It is a further object of the present invention to enhance GSM and LTEindoor location accuracy. In another aspect, an embodiment of thepresent invention provides localization of a user based on the radiosignature of the mobile device. FIG. 4 depicts a typical indoor systememploying multiple Remote Radio Head Units (RRUs) and a central DigitalAccess Unit (DAU). In accordance with the invention, each Remote RadioHead provides unique header information on data received by that RemoteRadio Head. The system of the invention uses this header information inconjunction with the mobile user's radio signature to localize the userto a particular cell. It is a further object of the present invention tore-route local traffic to Internet VOIP, Wi-Fi or WiMAX. In this aspectof the invention, an embodiment determines the radio signatures of theindividual users within a DAU or Island of DAUs and uses thisinformation to identify if the users are located within the coveragearea associated with a specific DAU or Island of DAUs. The DAUs trackthe radio signatures of all the active users within its network andrecord a running data base containing information pertaining to them.One embodiment of the present invention is for the Network OperationsCenter (NOC) to inform the DAU that, e.g., two specific users arecollocated within the same DAU or Island of DAUs, as depicted in FIG. 6.The DAUs then reroute the users to Internet VOIP, Wi-Fi or WiMAX asappropriate. Another embodiment of the present invention is to determinethe Internet Protocol (IP) addresses of the individual users' Wi-Ficonnections. If the individual users' IP addresses are within the sameDAU or Island of DAUs, the data call for these users is rerouted overthe internal network.

Applications of the present invention are suitable to be employed withdistributed base stations, distributed antenna systems, distributedrepeaters, mobile equipment and wireless terminals, portable wirelessdevices, and other wireless communication systems such as microwave andsatellite communications. The present invention is also field upgradablethrough a link such as an Ethernet connection to a remote computingcenter.

Appendix I is a glossary of terms used herein, including acronyms.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further objects and advantages of the present invention can be morefully understood from the following detailed description taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram according to one embodiment of the inventionshowing the basic structure and an example of a Flexible Simulcastdownlink transport scenario based on having 2 DAU and 4 DRU.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention showing the basic structure and an example of a FlexibleSimulcast uplink transport scenario based on having 2 DAU and 4 DRU.

FIG. 3 shows an embodiment of an indoor system employing multiple RemoteRadio Head Units (RRUs) and a central Digital Access Unit (DAU).

FIG. 4 shows an embodiment of an indoor system in accordance with theinvention which employs multiple Remote Radio Head Units (RRUs) and acentral Digital Access Unit (DAU).

FIG. 5 illustrates an embodiment of a cellular network system employingmultiple Remote Radio Heads according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a depiction of local connectivity according to one embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 7 illustrates an embodiment of the basic structure of the embeddedsoftware control modules which manage key functions of the DAU and RRU,in accordance with the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is a novel Reconfigurable Distributed AntennaSystem that provides a high degree of flexibility to manage, control,re-configure, enhance and facilitate the radio resource efficiency,usage and overall performance of the distributed wireless network. Anembodiment of the Reconfigurable Distributed Antenna System inaccordance with the present invention is shown in FIG. 1. The FlexibleSimulcast System 100 can be used to explain the operation of FlexibleSimulcast with regard to downlink signals. The system employs a DigitalAccess Unit functionality (hereinafter “DAU”). The DAU serves as aninterface to the base station (BTS). The DAU is (at one end) connectedto the BTS, and on the other side connected to multiple RRUs. For thedownlink (DL) path, RF signals received from the BTS are separatelydown-converted, digitized, and converted to baseband (using a DigitalDown-Converter). Data streams are then I/Q mapped and framed. Specificparallel data streams are then independently serialized and translatedto optical signals using pluggable SFP modules, and delivered todifferent RRUs over optical fiber cable. For the uplink (UL) pathoptical signals received from RRUs are deserialized, deframed, andup-converted digitally using a Digital Up-Converter. Data streams arethen independently converted to the analog domain and up-converted tothe appropriate RF frequency band. The RF signal is then delivered tothe BTS. An embodiment of the system is mainly comprised of DAU1indicated at 101, RRU1 indicated at 103, RRU2 indicated at 104, DAU2indicated at 102, RRU3 indicated at 105, and RRU4 indicated at 106. Acomposite downlink input signal 107 from, e.g., a base station belongingto one wireless operator enters DAU1 at the DAU1 RF input port.Composite signal 107 is comprised of Carriers 1-4. A second compositedownlink input signal from e.g., a second base station belonging to thesame wireless operator enters DAU2 at the DAU2 RF input port. Compositesignal 108 is comprised of Carriers 5-8. The functionality of DAU1,DAU2, RRU1, RRU2, RRU3 and RRU4 are explained in detail by U.S.Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/374593, entitled “Neutral HostArchitecture for a Distributed Antenna System,” filed Aug. 17, 2010 andattached hereto as an appendix. One optical output of DAU1 is fed toRRU1. A second optical output of DAU1 is fed via bidirectional opticalcable 113 to DAU2. This connection facilitates networking of DAU1 andDAU2, which means that all of Carriers 1-8 are available within DAU1 andDAU2 to transport to RRU1, RRU2, RRU3 and RRU4 depending on softwaresettings within the networked DAU system comprised of DAU1 and DAU2. Thesoftware settings within RRU1 are configured either manually orautomatically such that Carriers 1-8 are present in the downlink outputsignal 109 at the antenna port of RRU1. The presence of all 8 carriersmeans that RRU1 is potentially able to access the full capacity of bothbase stations feeding DAU1 and DAU2. A possible application for RRU1 isin a wireless distribution system is e.g., a cafeteria in an enterprisebuilding during the lunch hour where a large number of wirelesssubscribers are gathered. RRU2 is fed by a second optical port of RRU1via bidirectional optical cable 114 to RRU2. Optical cable 114 performsthe function of daisy chaining RRU2 with RRU1. The software settingswithin RRU2 are configured either manually or automatically such thatCarriers 1, 3, 4 and 6 are present in downlink output signal 110 at theantenna port of RRU2. The capacity of RRU2 is set to a much lower valuethan RRU1 by virtue of its specific Digital Up Converter settings. Theindividual Remote Radio Units have integrated frequency selective DUCsand DDCs with gain control for each carrier. The DAUs can remotely turnon and off the individual carriers via the gain control parameters.

In a similar manner as described previously for RRU1, the softwaresettings within RRU3 are configured either manually or automaticallysuch that Carriers 2 and 6 are present in downlink output signal 111 atthe antenna port of RRU3. Compared to the downlink signal 110 at theantenna port of RRU2, the capacity of RRU3 which is configured via thesoftware settings of RRU3 is much less than the capacity of RRU2. RRU4is fed by a second optical port of RRU3 via bidirectional optical cable115 to RRU4. Optical cable 115 performs the function of daisy chainingRRU4 with RRU3. The software settings within RRU4 are configured eithermanually or automatically such that Carriers 1, 4, 5 and 8 are presentin downlink output signal 112 at the antenna port of RRU4. The capacityof RRU4 is set to a much lower value than RRU1. The relative capacitysettings of RRU1, RRU2, RRU3 and RRU4 and can be adjusted dynamically asdiscussed in connection with FIG. 7 to meet the capacity needs withinthe coverage zones determined by the physical positions of antennasconnected to RRU1, RRU2, RRU3 and RRU4 respectively.

The present invention facilitates conversion and transport of severaldiscrete relatively narrow RF bandwidths. This approach allowsconversion of only those multiple specific relatively narrow bandwidthswhich carry useful or specific information. This approach also allowsmore efficient use of the available optical fiber transport bandwidthfor neutral host applications, and allows transport of more individualoperators' band segments over the optical fiber. As disclosed in U.S.Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/374593, entitled “Neutral HostArchitecture for a Distributed Antenna System,” filed Aug. 17, 2010 andalso referring to FIG. 1 of the instant patent application, Digital UpConverters located within the RRU which are dynamicallysoftware-programmable as discussed hereinafter can be re-configured totransport from the DAU input to any specific RRU output any specificnarrow frequency band or bands, RF carriers or RF channels which areavailable at the respective RF input port of either DAU. This capabilityis illustrated in FIG. 1 where only specific frequency bands or RFcarriers appear at the output of a given RRU.

A related capability of the present invention is that not only can theDigital Up Converters located within each RRU be configured to transportany specific narrow frequency band from the DAU input to any specificRRU output, but also the Digital Up Converters within each RRU can beconfigured to transport any specific time slot or time slots of eachcarrier from the DAU input to any specific RRU output. The DAU detectswhich carriers and corresponding time slots are active. This informationis relayed to the individual RRUs via the management control andmonitoring protocol software discussed hereinafter. This information isthen used, as appropriate, by the RRUs for turning off and on individualcarriers and their corresponding time slots.

Referring to FIG. 1 of the instant patent application, an alternativeembodiment of the present invention may be described as follows. In aprevious description of FIG. 1, a previous embodiment involved havingdownlink signals from two separate base stations belonging to the samewireless operator enter DAU1 and DAU2 input ports respectively. In analternative embodiment, a second composite downlink input signal frome.g., a second base station belonging to a different wireless operatorenters DAU2 at the DAU2 RF input port. In this embodiment, signalsbelonging to both the first operator and the second operator areconverted and transported to RRU1, RRU2, RRU3 and RRU4 respectively.This embodiment provides an example of a neutral host wireless system,where multiple wireless operators share a common infrastructurecomprised of DAU1, DAU2, RRU1, RRU2, RRU3 and RRU4. All the previouslymentioned features and advantages accrue to each of the two wirelessoperators.

As disclosed in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/374593,entitled “Neutral Host Architecture for a Distributed Antenna System,”filed Aug. 17, 2010 and also referring to FIG. 1 of the instant patentapplication, the Digital Up Converters present in the RRU can beprogrammed to process various signal formats and modulation typesincluding FDMA, CDMA, TDMA, OFDMA and others. Also, the Digital UpConverters present in the respective RRUs can be programmed to operatewith signals to be transmitted within various frequency bands subject tothe capabilities and limitations of the system architecture disclosed inU.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/374593, entitled “Neutral HostArchitecture for a Distributed Antenna System,” filed Aug. 17, 2010. Inone embodiment of the present invention where a wideband CDMA signal ispresent within e.g., the bandwidth corresponding to carrier 1 at theinput port to DAU1, the transmitted signal at the antenna ports of RRU1,RRU2 and RRU4 will be a wideband CDMA signal which is virtuallyidentical to the signal present within the bandwidth corresponding tocarrier 1 at the input port to DAU1.

As disclosed in U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/374593,entitled “Neutral Host Architecture for a Distributed Antenna System,”filed Aug. 17, 2010 and also referring to FIG. 1 of the instant patentapplication, it is understood that the Digital Up Converters present inthe respective RRUs can be programmed to transmit any desired compositesignal format to each of the respective RRU antenna ports. As anexample, the Digital Up Converters present in RRU1 and RRU2 can bedynamically software-reconfigured as described previously so that thesignal present at the antenna port of RRU1 would correspond to thespectral profile shown in FIG. 1 as 110, and also that the signalpresent at the antenna port of RRU2 would correspond to the spectralprofile shown in FIG. 1 as 109. The application for such a dynamicrearrangement of RRU capacity would be e.g., if a company meeting weresuddenly convened in the area of the enterprise corresponding to thecoverage area of RRU2. Although the description of some embodiments inthe instant application refers to base station signals 107 and 108 asbeing on different frequencies, the system and method of the presentinvention readily supports configurations where one or more of thecarriers which are part of base station signals 107 and 108 and areidentical frequencies, since the base station signals are digitized,packetized, routed and switched to the desired RRU.

Another embodiment of the Distributed Antenna System in accordance withthe present invention is shown in FIG. 2. As disclosed in U.S.Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/374593, entitled “Neutral HostArchitecture for a Distributed Antenna System,” filed Aug. 17, 2010 andalso as shown in FIG. 2 the Flexible Simulcast System 200 can be used toexplain the operation of Flexible Simulcast with regard to uplinksignals. As discussed previously with regard to downlink signals and byreferring to FIG. 1, the uplink system shown in FIG. 2 is mainlycomprised of DAU1 indicated at 201, RRU1 indicated at 203, RRU2indicated at 204, DAU2 indicated at 202, RRU3 indicated at 205, and RRU4indicated at 206. In a manner similar to the downlink operationexplained by referring to FIG. 1, the operation of the uplink systemshown in FIG. 2 can be understood as follows.

The Digital Down Converters present in each of RRU1, RRU2, RRU3 and RRU4are dynamically software-configured as described previously so thatuplink signals of the appropriate desired signal format(s) present atthe receive antenna ports of the respective RRU1, RRU2, RRU3 and RRU4are selected based on the desired uplink band(s) to be processed andfiltered, converted and transported to the appropriate uplink outputport of either DAU1 or DAU2. The DAUs and RRUs frame the individual datapackets corresponding to their respective radio signature using theCommon Public Interface Standard (CPRI). Other Interface standards areapplicable provided they uniquely identify data packets with respectiveRRUs. Header information is transmitted along with the data packet whichidentifies the RRU and DAU that corresponds to the individual datapacket.

In one example for the embodiment shown in FIG. 2, RRU1 and RRU3 areconfigured to receive uplink signals within the Carrier 2 bandwidth,whereas RRU2 and RRU4 are both configured to reject uplink signalswithin the Carrier 2 bandwidth. When RRU3 receives a strong enoughsignal at its receive antenna port within the Carrier 2 bandwidth to beproperly filtered and processed, the Digital Down Converters within RRU3facilitate processing and conversion. Similarly, when RRU1 receives astrong enough signal at its receive antenna port within the Carrier 2bandwidth to be properly filtered and processed, the Digital DownConverters within RRU1 facilitate processing and conversion. The signalsfrom RRU1 and RRU3 are combined based on the active signal combiningalgorithm, and are fed to the base station connected to the uplinkoutput port of DAU1. The term simulcast is frequently used to describethe operation of RRU1 and RRU3 with regard to uplink and downlinksignals within Carrier 2 bandwidth. The term Flexible Simulcast refersto the fact that the present invention supports dynamic and/or manualrearrangement of which specific RRU are involved in the signal combiningprocess for each Carrier bandwidth.

Referring to FIG. 2, the Digital Down Converters present in RRU1 areconfigured to receive and process signals within Carrier 1-8 bandwidths.The Digital Down Converters present in RRU2 are configured to receiveand process signals within Carrier 1, 3, 4 and 6 bandwidths. The DigitalDown Converters present in RRU3 are configured to receive and processsignals within Carrier 2 and 6 bandwidths. The Digital Down Converterspresent in RRU4 are configured to receive and process signals withinCarrier 1, 4, 5 and 8 bandwidths. The respective high-speed digitalsignals resulting from processing performed within each of the four RRUare routed to the two DAUs. As described previously, the uplink signalsfrom the four RRUs are combined within the respective DAU correspondingto each base station.

An aspect of the present invention includes an integrated Pilot Beaconfunction within the each RRU. In an embodiment, each RRU comprises aunique software programmable Pilot Beacon as discussed hereinafter Thisapproach is intended for use in CDMA and/or WCDMA indoor DAS networks. Avery similar approach can be effective for indoor location accuracyenhancement for other types of networks such as LTE and WiMAX. Becauseeach RRU is already controlled and monitored via the DAUs which comprisethe network, there is no need for costly deployment of additionaldedicated wireless modems for remote monitoring and control of pilotbeacons.

An RRU-integrated Pilot Beacon approach is employed for both CDMA andWCDMA networks. Each operational pilot beacon function within an RRUemploys a unique PN code (in that area) which effectively divides theWCDMA or CDMA indoor network coverage area into multiple small “zones”(which each correspond to the coverage area of a low-power PilotBeacon). Each Pilot Beacon's location, PN code and RF Power level areknown by the network. Each Pilot Beacon is synchronized to the WCDMA orCDMA network, via its connection to the DAU.

Unlike the transmit signal from a base station which is “dynamic”, thePilot Beacon transmit signal will be effectively “static” and itsdownlink messages will not change over time based on network conditions.

For a WCDMA network, in Idle mode each mobile subscriber terminal isable to perform Pilot Signal measurements of downlink signalstransmitted by base stations and Pilot Beacons. When the WCDMA mobilesubscriber terminal transitions to Active mode, it reports to theserving cell all its Pilot Signal measurements for base stations and forPilot Beacons. For CDMA networks, the operation is very similar. Forsome RRU deployed in an indoor network, the RRU can be provisioned aseither a Pilot Beacon or to serve mobile subscribers in a particularoperator bandwidth, but not both.

For a WCDMA network, existing inherent capabilities of theglobally-standardized networks are employed. The WCDMA mobile subscriberterminal is able to measure the strongest CPICH RSCP (Pilot Signal CodePower) in either Idle mode or any of several active modes. Also,measurements of CPICH Ec/No by the mobile subscriber terminal in eitherIdle mode or any of several active modes are possible. As a result, themobile subscriber terminal reports all available RSCP and Ec/Nomeasurements via the serving base station (whether indoor or outdoor) tothe network. Based on that information, the most likely mobilesubscriber terminal location is calculated and/or determined. For CDMAnetworks, the operation is very similar to the process described herein.

A previously described embodiment of the present invention referring toFIG. 1 involved having a wideband CDMA signal present within e.g., thebandwidth corresponding to carrier 1 at the input port to DAU1. In thepreviously described embodiment, the transmitted signal at the antennaports of RRU1, RRU2 and RRU4 is a wideband CDMA signal which isvirtually identical to the signal present within the bandwidthcorresponding to carrier 1 at the input port to DAU1. An alternativeembodiment of the present invention is one where a wideband CDMA signalis present within e.g., the bandwidth corresponding to carrier 1 at theinput port to DAU1. However, in the alternative embodiment thetransmitted signal at the antenna port of RRU1 differs slightly from theprevious embodiment. In the alternative embodiment, a wideband CDMAsignal is present within e.g., the bandwidth corresponding to carrier 1at the input port to DAU1. The transmitted signal from RRU1 is acombination of the wideband CDMA signal which was present at the inputport to DAU1, along with a specialized WCDMA pilot beacon signal. TheWCDMA pilot beacon signal is intentionally set well below the level ofthe base station pilot signal.

A further alternative embodiment can be explained referring to FIG. 1which applies in the case where CDMA signals are generated by the basestation connected to the input port of DAU1. In this further alternativeembodiment of the present invention, the transmitted signal at theantenna port of RRU1 is a combination of the CDMA signal which waspresent at the input port to DAU1, along with a specialized CDMA pilotbeacon signal. The CDMA pilot beacon signal is intentionally set wellbelow the level of the base station pilot signal.

An embodiment of the present invention provides enhanced accuracy fordetermining location of indoor wireless subscribers. FIG. 4 depicts atypical indoor system employing multiple Remote Radio Head Units (RRUs)and a central Digital Access Unit (DAU). Each Remote Radio Head providesa unique header information on data received by that Remote Radio Head.This header information in conjunction with the mobile user's radiosignature are used to localize the user to a particular cell. The DAUsignal processing can identify the individual carriers and theircorresponding time slots. A header is included with each data packetthat uniquely identifies the corresponding RRU. The DAU can detect thecarrier frequency and the corresponding time slot associated with theindividual RRUs. The DAU has a running data base that identifies eachcarrier frequency and time slot with a respective RRU. The carrierfrequency and time slot is the radio signature that uniquely identifiesthe GSM user.

The DAU communicates with a Network Operation Center (NOC) via aEthernet connection or an external modem, as depicted in FIG. 5. Once aE911 call is initiated the Mobile Switching Center (MSC) in conjunctionwith the NOC can identify the corresponding BaseTransceiver Station(BTS) where the user has placed the call. The user can be localizedwithin a BTS cell. The NOC then makes a request to the individual DAUsto determine if the E911 radio signature is active in their indoor cell.The DAU checks its data base for the active carrier frequency and timeslot. If that radio signature is active in the DAU, then that DAU willprovide the NOC with the location information of the corresponding RRU.

A further embodiment of the present invention includes LTE to provideenhanced accuracy for determining the location of indoor wirelesssubscribers. GSM uses individual carriers and time slots to distinguishusers whereas LTE uses multiple carriers and time slot information todistinguish users. The DAU can simultaneously detect multiple carriersand their corresponding time slots to uniquely identify the LTE user.The DAU has a running data base that identifies the carrier frequenciesand time slot radio signature for the respective RRU. This informationcan be retrieved from the NOC once a request is made to the DAU.

Referring next to FIG. 7, the DAU embedded software control module andRRU embedded software control module can be better understood inconnection with the operation of key functions of the DAU and RRU. Onesuch key function is determining and/or setting the appropriate amountof radio resources (such as RF carriers, CDMA codes or TDMA time slots)assigned to a particular RRU or group of RRUs to meet desired capacityand throughput objectives. The DAU embedded software control modulecomprises a DAU Monitoring module that detects which carriers andcorresponding time slots are active for each RRU. The DAU embeddedsoftware control module also comprises a DAU Management Control modulewhich communicates with the RRU over a fiber optic link control channelvia a control protocol with the RRU Management Control module. In turn,the RRU Management Control module sets the individual parameters of allthe RRU Digital Up-Converters to enable or disable specific radioresources from being transmitted by a particular RRU or group of RRUs,and also sets the individual parameters of all the RRU DigitalDown-Converters to enable or disable specific uplink radio resourcesfrom being processed by a particular RRU or group of RRUs.

In an embodiment, an algorithm operating within the DAU Monitoringmodule, that detects which carriers and corresponding time slots foreach carrier are active for each RRU, provides information to the DAUManagement Control module to help identify when, e.g., a particulardownlink carrier is loaded by a percentage greater than a predeterminedthreshold whose value is communicated to the DAU Management Controlmodule by the DAU's Remote Monitoring and Control function. If thatoccurs, the DAU Management Control module adaptively modifies the systemconfiguration to slowly begin to deploy additional radio resources (suchas RF carriers, CDMA codes or TDMA time slots) for use by a particularRRU which need those radio resources within its coverage area. At thesame time, in at least some embodiments the DAU Management Controlmodule adaptively modifies the system configuration to slowly begin toremove certain radio resources (such as RF carriers, CDMA codes or TDMAtime slots) for use by a particular RRU which no longer needs thoseradio resources within its coverage area. Another such key function ofthe DAU embedded software control module and RRU embedded softwarecontrol module is determining and/or setting and/or analyzing theappropriate transmission parameters and monitoring parameters for theintegrated Pilot Beacon function contained within each RRU. These PilotBeacon transmission and monitoring parameters include BeaconEnable/Disable, Beacon Carrier Frequencies, Beacon Transmit Power,Beacon PN Code, Beacon Downlink BCH Message Content, Beacon Alarm,Beacon Delay Setting and Beacon Delay Adjustment Resolution. The RRUPilot Beacon Control module communicates with the pilot beacon generatorfunction in the RRU to set and monitor the pilot beacon parameters aslisted herein.

In summary, the Reconfigurable Distributed Antenna System of the presentinvention described herein efficiently conserves resources and reducescosts. The reconfigurable system is adaptive or manuallyfield-programmable, since the algorithms can be adjusted like softwarein the digital processor at any time.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to thepreferred embodiments, it will be understood that the invention is notlimited to the details described thereof. Various substitutions andmodifications have been suggested in the foregoing description, andothers will occur to those of ordinary skill in the art. Therefore, allsuch substitutions and modifications are intended to be embraced withinthe scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

1. (canceled)
 2. A Distributed Antenna System (DAS), comprising: aplurality of communicatively coupled digital access units (DAUs), atleast one DAU of the plurality of DA Us configured to route traffic toanother DAU of the plurality of DAUs and to at least one remote radiounit (RRU); and the at least one RRU in communication with the at leastone DAU and configured to: transmit a plurality of radio frequency (RF)signals associated with the traffic to wireless subscribers, wherein theat least one DAU is configured to transmit the traffic to the at leastone RRU.
 3. The DAS of claim 2, wherein the traffic includes cellulartraffic data, and the at least one RRU is further configured to transmita plurality of RF signals associated with cellular traffic data to thewireless subscribers.
 4. The DAS of claim 2, wherein the trafficincludes IP traffic data and cellular traffic data, and the at least oneRRU is further configured to: transmit a first plurality of RF signalsassociated with the IP traffic data to the wireless subscribers; andtransmit a second plurality of RF signals associated with the cellulartraffic data to the wireless subscribers.
 5. The DAS of claim 2, whereinthe traffic includes IP traffic data and cellular traffic data, and theat least one DAU is configured to transmit the traffic to the at leastone RRU via a communication path shared between the IP traffic data andthe cellular traffic data.
 6. The DAS of claim 2, wherein the at leastone DAU is configured to receive the traffic from a base transceiverstation (BTS) via an RF connection, a repeater, or an opticalconnection.
 7. The DAS of claim 2, wherein a first RF signal of theplurality of RF signals includes a first plurality of carriers, and asecond RF signal of the plurality of RF signals includes a secondplurality of carriers, and wherein a number of the first plurality ofcarriers is different than a number of the second plurality of carriers.